Ira Glass to bring radio moments alive

Linda Tuccio-Koonz

Updated 10:32 pm, Friday, October 12, 2012

RIDGEFIELD -- Ira Glass, creator of the public radio show "This American Life," will bring his iPad to town Sunday.

He'll use it when he talks about his program and how it's put together, what makes a compelling story, and how he and his staff find stories.

"I can play clips of quotes and music and create a whole show," he said in a phone interview about his Ridgefield Playhouse appearance.

"I perform bits of stories to illustrate what I'm talking about. The whole thing is a big excuse to amuse the audience and get laughs."

Glass takes the stage at 7:30 p.m., recreating memorable moments from "This American Life" and sharing the secrets of how they were created. An audience Q&A will follow.

The Chelsea, N.Y., resident, whose office is also in Chelsea, has more than 2 million listeners. "It's not a trivial thing. It's a huge feeling," he said, and it's nice not having to live paycheck to paycheck.

Glass, 53, recalls he was in his late 30s when he finally reached a level of success where he had money in the bank for the first time, rather than needing to spend each check as it came in. He recalls thinking, "OK, I'm safe!"

The feeling now is, "We're afloat, there's water under the boat, we'll be OK."

Back in the 1970s, Glass was a 19-year-old intern at NPR. There was no actual internship program, but he talked some folks into letting him stick around.

"They needed help in the promos department, and I had done that at my college station," he said. "I could make something that was 30 seconds long, so I wrote and produced some promos."

Glass said there was a guy there whose job was to find new ways to do documentaries, and he liked the way Glass did his promos.

"He was impressed and hired me as a production assistant," said Glass, who carried his skills into other aspects of the job.

"With promos, you have to sell an idea in 30 seconds," he explained. "It was really good training. Interns have time on their hands -- you can make something special that really jumps out of the radio.

"You have to think about what is going to make a story come alive for someone who doesn't give a damn and is just listening," he added.

"You have to take people who are really indifferent to what you're saying and get their attention and hold their attention. A 30-second promo is as good a place to start as any."

With over 2 million listeners enjoying "This American Life," it's obvious Glass and his team have more than mastered the art of drawing people in for the pleasure of a great story and then telling it in a way that keeps them coming back for more.